Tag Archives: joy

Perhaps it was because we recently had two new moons in Leo, simultaneously with the sun and mars in Leo. And one of those new moons was a super-charged solar eclipse.

All of this planetary energy in Leo during the season of Leo made for quite an amplified Leo energy in the atmosphere and psyche, especially if you have any prominent planets in Leo in your natal chart.

Romance was likely in the air, whether it was renewing old sparks or enjoying new flames of passion. Having fun would have been a high priority. Party much?! Creative self-expression is another area that would have been highlighted with so much emphasis on Leo, also known as “the performer”. Playing in general is Leo territory and letting the inner child express boldly and spontaneously so that it can be appreciated, praised and even applauded. Being fully present as the unique self, experiencing and sharing joy, is Leo’s aim.

This energy was thick!

So it might have felt like hitting a wall of some kind when the sun transited into the humble sign of Virgo on August 22nd.

I felt it as a distinct impulse to “get down to business” and do some much needed work that I had been putting off.

The Virgo function is very different than Leo. Whereas Leo basks in the glory of its ego with a kind of enlightened selfishness at its best (and an obnoxious self-absorption at its worst!), Virgo attempts to acknowledge the flaws of ego, set it aside and get down to business working on crafting some skill that can be offered up to others in the spirit of service. With Virgo, it’s not all about fun and joy. It’s about being responsible, fixing and improving things that are broken (including the ego) and doing what needs to be done because it is there to be done and, quite frankly, who else will do it?!

It takes humility to set the ego aside and place the focus on meaningful work that can be of use to ourselves and/or others, and Virgo, at its best, has this humility in spades.

But what about Virgo’s worst?

Have you ever been so hard on yourself, so self-critical, that you felt like disappearing? But before the disappearing act, you would definitely punish yourself with feelings of guilt and shame? And this self-flagellation would be so intense that no self-sacrifice would have been too miserable to assuage those self-defeating thoughts and feelings?

This is an extreme picture, I know. But this is the worst of Virgo.

During Virgo season we are prompted to be critical of ourselves, our lives and even others. The task is to see what is wrong and what is broken so that it can be adjusted, fixed and improved. Virgo’s vision of perfection is meant to keep us striving to do our best, not to demean and punish ourselves.

So, if you have been feeling a bit of hopelessness at the reality of your current circumstances or have been beating yourself up as you acknowledge the gap between where you are and where you would like to be, stop, take a deep breath, and use this Virgo energy to discern one or two things you can work on and improve and get down to business!

And while you are working away, remember to be kind to yourself and to always practice unconditional self-acceptance.

Embrace the paradox that you are perfectly imperfect and always will be. But don’t let that stop you from continuously striving to bring out your full potential and excellence as a service to be offered to the world.